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| .....Are
you frustrated by the challenges of raising healthy children
in today's world? Our supermarket shelves are loaded with
inferior fodder, the media constantly bombards us with ads
for nutritionally void junk food and |
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lets not forget
the well-meaning relatives that still equate sugar with love!
Is it just a coincidence that learning and behavioral problems
are more common now than ever before? Could this be related
to our dependence on manufactured and devitalized foods? The
well-nourished child will be healthier and more alert. This
nourishment begins as early as the womb.
..... Optimal nutrition will
help build a stronger baby. A developing fetus depends upon
the mother's bloodstream for nourishment so it only stands
to reason that everything Mom ingests will have an effect
on her baby. Additionally, this fetus is solely dependant
upon the mother's immune system for protection. It is important
to eat a wide variety of health building foods and to weed
out habits that undermine your system and your baby's development.
This includes smoking, poor quality junk foods, excess fats
and sugars, caffeine, alcohol and drugs.
.....A balanced prenatal vitamin/mineral
supplement is recommended during pregnancy. Essential fatty
acids can help support a healthy immune response. Include
plenty of nuts, seeds and fish in your diet or add a daily
EFA supplement. You should be getting about 1000 - 1,500 mg
of calcium daily. If you have a hard time meeting this standard
through diet alone remember that calcium supplements work
best when taken in smaller doses throughout the day.
..... At birth, the infant's
immune system is not fully developed and will still depend
on the mother for support. Breast milk is clearly the best
food in these first six months. For some, breast-feeding can
be a natural and relaxed experience, for many others it can
be an overwhelming challenge. If you experience difficulty
breast-feeding for whatever reason, know that you are not
alone. Enlist support from your health care team or contact
your local La Leche League.
.....If breast-feeding is not
an option, discuss formula alternatives with your health practitioner.
There are many brands on the market. Similac and Enfamil are
two of the better milk based |
.....Don't be in a rush
to introduce solid foods to your baby. When he's ready,
your child may seem hungrier than usual between feedings
and begin to show an interest in food. Generally this
happens somewhere in the sixth or seventh month but
may be a month or two earlier. He should be able to
sit up well and you may notice his tongue motion has
changed from the up and down movement of sucking, to
the back and forth movement needed to push food around
in the mouth. Now is the time to start introducing soft,
bland, pureed foods. Start with the least allergenic
foods like rice, oat or barley cereals and over the
next few months gradually introduce yellow vegetables,
green beans, peas, and potatoes. When he has mastered
vegetables you can move on to fruits like applesauce,
peaches, apricots, plums, nectarines, pears and banana.
.....At around ten months,
you can begin to introduce the high protein foods like
meat, poultry, beans, egg yolks and tofu. Vegetable
proteins like beans, nuts and seeds need to be combined
with grains to make complete proteins. By the time your
child celebrates his first birthday, he will likely
be able to eat most foods. While he does have a few
teeth and some mastery in chewing, be careful with items
that could lodge in the windpipe such as popcorn, whole
nuts, chunks of raw carrots and so on.
.....Children are far more
susceptible to additives such as chemicals, pesticides,
hormones, and antibiotics, so the use of untreated or
organic foods are best.
.....Their developing bodies
have limited capacity for food so make sure that they
are offered a wide variety of nourishing wholesome foods.
Processed and devitalized foods contain nutritionally
inferior calories that will fill them up without providing
the nutrients needed for optimal health and development.
While we all would be better off without sugar and white
flour, they really have no place in a toddler's diet.
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formulas but you may have to experiment to find one that is
right for your child especially if there is a family history
of allergy. |
| .....Our children deserve
wholesome, balanced diets to ensure normal growth, optimal
i mmune response and to reach their full intellectual
potential. Let's not forget that the children of today
will be running our world tomorrow. Feed them well.
Good health to you! |
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| Written by: Darlene Booth, R.N.C.
in Quadra Island, B.C. |
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